STORM DESCRIPTION
A coastal storm brought a mixture of snow, ice and rain to New Jersey.

Synoptic Discussion
Low pressure began developing in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico during
the early morning hours of January 17th. By the
evening of the 17th the low was crossing the northern portion of the
Florida peninsula. By the morning of the 18th the
low had reached Cape Hatteras. It strengthened during the day and was
just south of Rhode Island by the evening of the
18th. By the morning of the 19th the low was in Nova Scotia.

Local Discussion
Precipitation overspread most of New Jersey during the mid to late
evening hours on the 17th, though it did not reach far
northern New Jersey until after midnight on the 18th. It started as
snow everywhere except extreme southern New Jersey,
where it started as freezing rain and sleet before quickly changing to
rain. The transition from snow to sleet and freezing
rain spread north quickly, overspreading southern New Jersey by 2 AM
EST, central New Jersey by 4 AM EST and northern New
Jersey by 6 AM EST. Warmer air took longer to move north at the
surface, with the sleet and freezing rain changing to rain
across southern New Jersey by 8 AM EST, central New Jersey by 11 AM EST
and northeastern New Jersey by 12 PM EST. A change
to plain rain didn't occur in northwestern New Jersey before the
precipitation ended statewide during the afternoon. Snow
accumulations were highest in northern New Jersey where totals ranged
from 1 to 3 inches, while accumulations in southern
New Jersey were generally 1 inch or less. Ice accumulations ranged from
a half inch in northern New Jersey to less than a
tenth of an inch in parts of southern New Jersey. Minor tidal flooding
also occurred along the coast.

New Jersey Snowfall TotalsIndividual
Snowfall Totals from January 17-18, 2011